Ancient Man
by Nubiangeek63
Summary: Declan is swept up in a mysterious adventure because of a beautiful woman.


Title: Ancient Man  
Author: NubianGeek  
Summary: Declan is caught up in a search for a famous archaeologist that  
brings him to beautiful Maya temples and brings him to a wonderful lady love.  
Disclaimer: All standard acknowledgments apply. The idea and background for  
the Maya are from the book The Adventures of Holly Hobbie. The word Maya  
refers to the people and the language. Maya is also used as an adjective  
wherever anything pertaining to the Maya is described. Expert  
archaeologists, anthropologists, and art historians on Mesoamerica who have  
dealt with the subject and its literature for many years have developed an  
official policy for the use of the word Maya in the nominal, adjectival, and  
plural forms (and avoid using the word Mayan).

Declan Dunne was in his office, when he received an unexpectant visitor.  
"Hello, are you Declan Dunne?" When Declan looked up, he was stunned by her exotic beauty. She had long, black hair, almond-shaped eyes and dark skin. Her beauty was mesmerizing.  
"I need your help. Your name was given to me by someone who knew my  
father, Michael Patton."  
Declan recognized the name not from personal experience, but from  
academic circles.  
"I was sorry to hear about your father." Declan invited her to sit down.  
"That's just it, Mr. Dunne, I do not believe that my father is dead."  
Declan had heard about Michael Patton disappearing in the jungles of  
Central America.  
"I have been having dreams about my father. I believe that he is very  
much alive."  
Declan looked at the girl standing before him. She definitely did  
believe what she was saying, but, from everything that he had seen and read,  
Michael Patton was dead.  
"So, Ms. Patton, what would you like me to do?"  
"Tamika."  
"Excuse me?" "Tamika. My name is Tamika. I want you to help me find my father."  
Declan stared at her for a few moments, and the first thought that came to his mind was that this was a wild goose chase.  
"Declan."  
"What?"  
"Declan, my name is Declan. I guess I can help you." He didn't sound  
too sure of himself, Tamika thought as she looked at him.  
"Tell me about your dream."  
"I am standing in the middle of the jungle, when two jaguars - one black  
and one spotted - race toward me in slow motion. I start to fall, when the  
voice of my high school Spanish teacher appears. She's fussing at me,  
'Senorita Patton, es muy facil to find your father.' I hear parrots  
shrieking all around. 'El tigre, el tigre!' The monkeys are teasing me.  
Then, in the distance, I see my father. He was kneeling to study an ancient,  
round altar carved with the face and paws of a jaguar and the body of a man - what the natives call a were-jaguar. The cats are coming closer and closer  
to my father."  
Declan watched her as she related the dream. She seemed to be paralyzed  
with fear as she spoke.  
"I watched him being torn apart and there was nothing I could do to help  
him." She was crying now and there was no doubt in his mind that he was  
going to help her.

Tamika showed Declan a necklace and a letter from her father before he  
disappeared. The necklace was a green plaque. She wore it on a leather  
thong around her neck. On the front was a carving of a jaguar.  
"Jaguars were often used as symbols in Maya writings." Declan said.  
He looked at the letter from her father. In the letter, her father  
mentioned the Peabody Museum. He had been there just last December.  
"Wait a minute." Declan went shuffling through his many books and  
papers, and finally found the one that he was looking for. He responded to  
her questioning gaze.  
"It's a catalog from the Peabody Museum." Declan flipped through the  
catalog until he found a picture of the jaguar on her necklace.  
"Here it says, 'Cast of Stela 40, Tikla, Guatemala. Date: circa 633.'"  
There was a look of purpose on Tamika's face.  
"We have to go to Boston."

"You're going where?" Miranda asked.  
"I'm going to Boston - to the Peabody Museum, to be exact." Miranda shook her head not understanding.  
"So, this girl just walks into your office and lays some story on you, and now you're going off to Boston with her?"  
Declan knew that it sounded strange, but he believed her for some reason.

They had been cleared for take off and each of them sat in nervous  
silence. They had not spoken of anything other than the mystery surrounding  
her father. He wanted to get to know her.  
"So, Tamika, tell me about your childhood."  
Tamika looked shyly at this man that she had asked for help. He was very handsome, and his eyes seemed to pierce right through her.  
"I was born in the United States, but my mother was Guatemalan. My  
father met my mother on one of his first trips there. He used to write  
poetry to her. She kept every one of his letters. They were so in love."  
She lowered her head in embarrassment. She had not meant to talk about love.  
"When did your mother die?" He saw a sadness come over her face.  
"She died a month ago. That's when I decided to find out what happened  
to my father." Declan couldn't help but feel sorry for this girl who has  
suffered so much tragedy in such a short period of time.  
"Yes, I lost my mother and my father within the last year. I am alone  
now." She was trying to be so strong. He wanted to put his arms around her  
and hold her.  
They spoke some more throughout the trip and Declan couldn't shake the  
feeling of being drawn to this woman.

The old woman was doing what she had done for so many times before. She took a pinch of the ground tortilla dough that she had already made. She rolled it into a ball and put it on a banana leaf. She flattened the ball into a thin disk. She put the flattened disk of tortilla dough on the comal  
- a blackened circle of thin metal that is held over the fire.  
Rosana was Maya. She and her husband, Raul, had come to Guatemala from Yucatan twenty years ago. Raul was a stone mason who had come to work on the ruins of Tikal. The ruins were different here. The mounds were higher and steeper than those of the Yucatan.  
There were many archaeologists, at first, at Tikal. Only a few remained. Last winter, Raul and his wife had talked about moving back to the  
Yucatan, when suddenly, the work began again. A man named Joshua Watkins,  
who Raul assumed was an archaeologist, had hired him. Most of the work was  
at night, for some reason.  
Then, Raul vanished. He had been gone four months. Rosana went to ask  
Joshua Watkins where her husband was, but Senor Watkins said that Raul must have gotten drunk and run off. Rosana, however, did not believe this.

When Tamika and Declan arrived in Boston, they checked into the hotel.  
Declan didn't ask where Tamika's money came from. Maybe she was  
independently wealthy.  
They made their way to the Peabody Museum and were directed to the Maya  
display. They are directed to see Jeff Wilson, who is a graduate student in  
Mesoamerican Anthropology. They are disappointed with what he has to tell  
them.  
"The exhibit that you want, is on loan to the American Museum of Natural  
History in New York. Tomorrow is the last day there and then it will move  
to Vienna."  
"Is there anything you can tell us about this pendant?" Tamika showed  
him the pendant.  
"Well, I can't comment on the hieroglyphic - it's not my field. It does  
have one glyph that is called the emblem glyph, which is probably the name of an ancient Maya city. I remember seeing this somewhat recently. I think that it might be on a cast sent from the Guatemalan government. It's in the Tikal stela with the exhibit in New York."  
Tamika looked confused, so Declan filled in the blanks.  
"Stelae are big, stone monuments that were set up to commemorate  
special days and events. The Maya did a lot with calendars. The jaguar may  
represent a certain dynasty of rulers of that city. There are different  
kinds of jaguars in Maya art."  
Jeff Wilson confirmed what Declan had to say and added, "Your father  
thought that the stelae contained mathematical formulas. He was alsointerested in astronomy. The pendant might be part of a formula that has to  
do with the location of a city."

They decided to spend the night in Boston and leave for New York the  
next day. That night at dinner, Declan asked more questions.  
"You think that I'm a spoiled, little, rich girl, don't you?"Tamika exclaimed in response to his questions. Declan didn't particularly think that she was spoiled, but . . .  
"I have money from a trust fund from my grandmother. I hadn't used any of it until now." She seemed very proud of the fact that she was independent.  
"So, what were you doing before your father disappeared?" Another cloud  
came across her face. Declan was beginning to read her very well.  
"I traveled with my father some. He was working on a book and I was  
helping him with it. In fact, I would have been with him when he -disappeared if I hadn't been off with some man." She caught herself again.  
She hadn't meant to say that. Declan was now curious.  
"Who was this man?" Is he still uh - in the picture?" Declan was trying not to be so obvious and not succeeding very well. Tamika smiled at this. It was obvious that she was interested as well.  
"We are no longer seeing one another. We broke up shortly after my dad  
disappeared." Declan 's only response was a smile.  
"He's where?" Peggie said, looking up from her paperwork.  
"He's in Boston, but they are headed for New York." Peggie could hardly  
believe her ears.  
"And, he's doing this because this girl just walked into his office?"  
Miranda nodded.  
"He knows her father's reputation, but that's it. Do you think he's  
getting in way over his head?"  
"Declan? Is there any doubt?"

He walked her back to her room and he knew that he was going to kiss  
her. His only question was whether or not she would kiss him back.  
"What are you thinking about?" she asked as they stood outside her  
door. Declan was trying to decide whether to tell her the truth or to lie,  
when Tamika put her arms around him and kissed him. Her tongue parted hislips as she deepened the kiss.  
Declan moaned as he put his arms around her. He desperately wanted to  
move things to another location, but before he could do anything to act on  
his feelings, Tamika suddenly stopped and pulled away.  
"W-What's wrong?" he asked. Declan was breathing erratically and knew that he would not have stopped, if she hadn't.  
"I'm sorry. I had no right starting something that I knew I couldn't  
finish - at least not yet anyway."  
She smiled weakly as she turned and went inside and shut the door.  
Declan had a hard time sleeping that night and he did have to take a cold  
shower when he returned to his room. Little did he know that someone was  
watching their every movement.

The next morning when Tamika saw Declan, she was very embarrassed.  
"Declan, look, I want to apologize for last night. I'm sorry."  
"Well, I'm not sorry." Tamika lowered her eyes in embarrassment. She  
hadn't expected him to say that.  
"Look, if you want me to act as if nothing ever happened, I suppose I  
could, but I don't want to." Declan put his hand on her cheek. She shook  
involuntarily, but she was glad for his touch. She then, deliberately,  
changed the subject.  
"Are you ready to go to New York?"

When they arrived in New York, they went directly to the American Museum  
of Natural History. They looked up and saw a sign that said, 'The Children  
of the Sun' exhibit. They looked at each other trying to decide what to do.  
Declan reached for the cassette players and earphones that they issued to  
people for self-guided tours, and they joined the throng of people going to  
see the display.  
_ "Hello. I'm Ansley Dunkirk, assistant curator at the American Museum of Natural History. I will be guiding you through the 'Treasures of the Maya - Children of the Sun' exhibition. You will see fifty beautiful pieces that  
have been found during the last century. As you go along the tour, please  
feel free to stop this recording at any time to view items more closely.  
From time to time, you will hear a beep that will signal you to turn themachine off until you move to the next item.  
The first item that you will see is an ancient Maya priest in full  
ceremonial regalia. This is how he might have appeared between A.D. 600 and  
700."  
They came to a stone shaped like a jaguar, but with human eyes and nose  
and a drooping, sinister mouth with large fangs.  
"It's not the same as the one on my pendant." Tamika whispered.  
Tamika and Declan moved on and found another stone. The writing was the same as that on the pendant.  
"Cast of Stela 40, Tikal, Guatemala Date: 9.10.0.0.0.1 Ahau 8 Kayab  
in the Maya calendar, equal to January 25 A.D. 633. This Stela depicts a  
priest or ruler, probably of Tikal. The badly eroded glyphs conceal the  
exact time interval, but the event relates to another city symbolized by the  
emblem glyph in position D4."  
The jaguar was present.  
"I still think the jaguar stands for a city and the information on the  
back refers to that city." Declan said. Tamika could not refute what he was  
saying. She couldn't help feeling hopeless about the whole situation.  
Declan, seeing her disappointment in not finding more clues, decided to  
cheer her up.  
"Come on, I'm going to show you the stars." Tamika looked at him  
strangely.  
When they arrived at the planetarium, she was perplexed even more.  
"It'll take your mind off things. Besides, the Maya thought a lot about  
stars."_

"These movements of the stars and even the time of the sunrise at  
different periods of the year are correlated with the stones of Stonehenge,  
the temples of the Maya, and perhaps even some circular rock formations in  
Wyoming, according to the findings of Leo Goodman of the University of  
Pennsylvania. Recently Professor Goodman, working with field anthropologists  
like the late Michael Patton, further substantiated his theory that many of  
the monuments of the Maya and others . . . "  
Tamika didn't like hearing of her father referred to as 'late'.  
"I need to get out of here." Tamika whispered and left before the show  
was over. Declan followed her out and put a comforting arm around her  
shoulder.

Meanwhile, Peggie and Miranda were having an adventure themselves.  
Miranda happened to be walking past Declan's office, when she noticed that  
the door was ajar. Thinking that he had come to his senses and returned from  
his foolish trip, she went in intent upon chewing him out.  
"Oh my . . . "  
She turned on the light and saw that Declan's office had been ransacked.  
"Peggie, I think Declan's in trouble."  
Peggie shared her concerns.  
"When did you last hear from Declan?"  
"He was on his way to the University of Pennsylvania. They went to see  
Leo Goodman."  
"Let's go."

"The Maya were obsessed with the past and curious about the future.  
They thought that events in heaven were related to events on earth. They  
believe that history repeats itself and certain cycles of movements of stars  
and planets occurred at the same time as changes in their realm, for  
example, earthquakes. They also say that the world will end in 2013."  
Leo Goodman was rambling on so that she could scarcely keep up. She decided to just show him her pendant. He seemed quite interested.  
"There is a glyph symbol on here that we found elsewhere that we thought  
meant 'earthquake'. It is the earth symbol that is also one that represents  
names of the days of the week. In some texts, this symbol has a split in it, and  
it's not the day sign in those texts. We were checking to see if Maya  
prophecies had any basis in fact. We followed the prophecies that included  
the cracked earth symbol and we worked out the date to be February of 1976."  
Goodman said.  
"There was an earthquake in Guatemala in February of 1976." Tamika said  
slowly. Declan looked at her with great surprise.  
"How could you possibly know that?" "That's how my parents met. My father was there when the earthquake  
occurred. He helped with the clean up. That's how he met my mom. Professor  
Goodman, how did you and my father come to start working together?"  
"Michael was looking for a lost city. He wanted me to write a computer  
program that took into account all of his clues and come up with a list of  
alignments that we could plot on satellite photographs to try to locate the  
lost city. Michael said that it would save a lot of money knowing exactly  
where the city was." Leo Goodman looked as if he didn't want to share the  
next bit of information.  
"Go ahead, Professor Goodman. I want to hear everything."  
Goodman continued reluctantly.  
"A lot of other researchers resented your father's findings. They felt  
that research money could be put to better use. He and I ended up fighting.  
The satellite pictures won't be released for three years because they are a  
part of military intelligence. Michael was impatient because he was concerned about looters."  
"So, you were urging him to wait?" Declan asked.  
"Yes, but he decided not to wait for the final calculations, and when  
Joshua Watkins offered to finance his expedition, he went for it." Declan  
noticed the look of distaste on Goodman's face at the mention of Watkins'  
name.  
"Do you know if my father had anymore notes that we could look at?"  
Tamika asked desperately.  
"They are on loan to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.

They had been given the name Curtis White. When they arrived at the  
Smithsonian, they headed to where Michael Patton's pictures were on display.  
As they were standing there looking at the pictures, Tamika lamented,  
"Why did the Smithsonian abandon my father?" She wasn't asking anyone in particular, but she was answered.  
"The Smithsonian didn't really abandon your father. His permit expired.  
If he had stayed at Tikal, we would have continued support." Curtis White appeared.  
"Basically, you didn't condone him running off looking for the lost  
city." Declan added. Curtis White didn't catch Declan's biting sarcasm. "Professor Goodman called me. We do have your father's last diary."  
They followed him to his office and he gave them the battered leather-bound  
book.

They were sitting in Tamika's hotel room on her bed. Declan was highly  
aware of where they were sitting and he tried hard to keep his mind on what  
they were doing.  
"So, what does you father's last entry say?" he asked. Tamika began  
reading:

_"I am surviving as best as I can in This dense jungle. The pendant  
that I am sending to Tamika is a magnificent piece. It is too bad that I  
don't know where it was found, but had we known, the Guatemalan government  
wouldn't have released it to me. I feel that it is somehow important in my  
search in the rainforest.  
The pendant is 3 3/4" wide, 2 5/8" high and barely ½" thick. The  
front is carved into a jaguar profile with a plant attached. The back  
includes glyphs. Now the latest discovery: We have searched the immediate  
vicinity of Temple IV. We don't know why the Stela fragment was not seen  
before! Maybe because no one was looking for it. This new fragment bears  
the Maya calendar date: 6 kan 17 chen - 9.17.14.12.4. Nothing else could  
possibly work.  
Funds are running out, but I am reluctant to leave. The looters are  
getting more numerous. I feel that I must move quickly before they loot the  
site."_

There was a kind of silence when she finished reading as the words from  
her father sunk in.  
"Well, where do you think we go from here?" She was so wide-eyed and  
innocent. He had to keep telling himself that she didn't want to move any  
further in their relationship, but his mind kept straying.  
"Uh - well - um - I think we need to check out that guy Watkins. You  
know, the one whose name keeps popping up. Goodman didn't seem to care for him too much." Tamika agreed. They would see Watkins first thing in the morning. "Right now, I'm starving!" Declan exclaimed.

"I can't believe we're running all over the country looking for Declan.  
We should have stayed home and waited for him to call us." Miranda didn't  
know what it was, but she had a bad feeling about everything.  
"Look, the man at the university said that they were headed to  
Washington. While we're here on the east coast, we might as well check it  
out." Peggie was not convinced.

When Declan walked Tamika back to her room, he knew immediately that  
something was wrong. Tamika's door was slightly ajar.  
"Wait a minute." Declan whispered. Declan gently moved Tamika back  
behind him as he slowly opened the door. He listened carefully. He wanted  
to make sure that they weren't walking in on anyone. There was no sound as  
he moved silently into the darkness. Whoever was there, was gone now.  
Declan turned on the light. The room had been trashed. Thankfully, the  
diary was still there.  
"What were they looking for?" Tamika asked. She was still whispering  
even though the danger had passed. Declan didn't seem to know what they were looking for.  
"Declan, can I stay with you tonight?" Any other time, he would have  
been turned on by that statement. He didn't think that when they started  
this adventure that they would actually be in any danger.  
When they went to his room, they noticed that it had been searched as  
well, but it didn't look nearly as bad as her room.  
"They must have figured that I didn't have whatever they're looking  
for." Declan said lightheartedly. He looked at her. She was really scared now.  
"I'll sleep in the chair. You can have the bed." Normally she would  
refuse his gallant offer, but she was so tired all she could do was smile  
at him weakly.  
He sat in the chair, in the dark, and listened to her breath. He  
thought about how vulnerable she had looked and how much he wanted to swoopher up into his arms and kiss her.  
He knew what she was thinking. She was starting to doubt whether her  
father was really alive and if he was, were these people after him?  
Suddenly, Tamika began to thrash around in her sleep. She was having  
another nightmare. He got up and moved to the bed. He slid in and held her  
and tried to calm her as best as he could. She was crying now - sobbing  
quietly - and he held her tighter. Tamika instinctly put her arms around him  
and held onto him. It was in this way that Declan drifted off to sleep.

The next morning found Declan and Tamika tangled together in a  
comfortable heap. Tamika was embarrassed to find them this way when she  
awoke. Before she could speak, Declan answered her.  
"You were having a nightmare." At first, Tamika looked as if she  
didn't believe him, but then she did recall that she had the recurring  
nightmare agin last night. Instead of raking him over the coals, she held  
onto him as she had done the night before. His heart ached for her so badly,  
but all he could do was just hold her and follow her lead. He vowed that he  
would not take advantage of her.  
"I'm all right now. Thank you." Tamika prepared herself for the  
interview with Joshua Watkins. Curtis White had told them that Joshua  
Watkins, whose official occupation was an art historian, now runs ICAR -  
Institute of Central American Research in New Orleans. White knew Watkins  
because they had asked him to authenticate certain pieces in their collection.  
"Hello Ms. Patton. I am very sorry for your loss. I fail to understand  
why you are embarking on this search." Tamika disliked the man the moment  
she met him. Declan didn't like the man much either.  
"I do no think that my father is dead, Mr. Watkins." Watkins was very  
surprised to hear this.  
"I don't understand. There has been no sign of him for more than six months.  
Your mother and I searched his last known camp throughly. He was just gone.  
He had left in March to go traipsing out into the jungle. I left for New  
Orleans on the 17th and we brought cratefuls of artifacts with us including  
your father's diaries, letters and tape-recorded greetings. We flew those  
things out which were the only communications from him." It was Tamika's turn  
to be surprised. "Tape? There was no tape. He did send me a letter in a plastic cassette  
case. You must have thought it was a tape." Declan was watching Watkins  
suspiciously.  
"He also sent me this pendant." Declan didn't miss the look of  
excitement that crossed Watkins' face for only a moment.  
"Can you tell me anything about these symbols?" Tamika asked.  
"It is a jaguar. It is a glyph from the Maya writing system. I don't  
recognize that particular one. I don't think that the pendant is of much  
value." He caught the look of sadness that crossed her face.  
"Except, maybe, sentimental value. I could send it to my research  
assistants for further analysis, if you wish." Watkins reached for the  
pendant and flashed his slimy smile at her.  
"That's all right. I prefer to hang onto it for - sentimental value." She replied.

From the time they left Mr. Watkins, until returning to the hotel,  
Declan had been unusually quiet.  
"Declan, what is it?" For some reason, Tamika had thought that she had  
done something wrong.  
"Something's not right. Watkins said that the things found at your  
father's camp were the last things your dad discovered. He said that he flew  
to New Orleans on March 17th, but the letter he gave to you was dated March  
22nd. Watkins might even have other notes or diaries at the Institute.  
Which means that we need to go to New Orleans."  
Tamika again slept in Declan's room, but they didn't bother with the  
pretense of having him sleep in the chair.  
"You realize that I'm only doing this because I'm scared." Declan  
didn't believe her.  
"Yeah, I know. You're just using my body."  
Tamika shook, fearing that Declan was a little too close to the truth. Instead, she chose to change the subject.  
"What could they be looking for? And, who are 'they'? They had both  
decided that Joshua Watkins was a 'bad guy', but was he behind the ransacking  
of the rooms?  
"Well, there could be missing notes and diaries, but I suspect that  
Watkins has those. Could there be someone else?" Tamika didn't like when  
people answered a question with a question. "Are you sure that you don't have anything else from your father?'  
Tamika shook her head.  
"The letter and necklace were the last things I received."

When they arrived in New Orleans, they immediately went to the Hotel  
Monteleone where they had already made reservations. Tamika believed  
more than ever now that Watkins had lied and that her father was indeed alive.  
When they arrived at the Institute, it was still quite early. So early, in fact, that there seemed to be no one around.  
"I think that we need to wait until the Institute opens." But, even as  
Declan was saying this, Tamika was headed to the basement. Little did they  
know, but Joshua Watkins was watching their every move via closed-circuit  
television.  
"Come on." Tamika whispered from the basement. Declan felt that he had  
no choice but to follow.  
"We could get into a lot of trouble if we're caught down here." He fussed as he joined her downstairs. When he reached her, he saw that she was standing in front of a crate. On the crate was stenciled ICARUS - New Orleans Chicle Products for Export Procutores Tropicales.  
"What does Icarus have to do with this? Declan asked.  
"ICARUS stands for Institute for Central American Research, United  
States office." Tamika replied.  
"Oh." was all Declan could say. Then, when Declan read the rest of the  
inscription, he said, "Why does he need this much chicle? Does he like  
chewing gum or what?" They heard movement up above and scurried up to the first floor.  
Suddenly, Watkins appeared. Declan and Tamika tried not to look  
surprised, after all, they had come there to see him. At least they had  
moved back to the upper level, Declan thought. Watkins had invited them to  
his office, but he did not look happy to see them.  
"I can't think why I should be seeing you so soon after our last  
meeting." Watkins said, looking somewhat irritated.  
"I'm still searching for more copies of everything my dad wrote. thought you might see if you had more papers in the crates of stuff you havein your basement." Declan looked horrified that she had actually admitted  
that they were snooping around in the basement. Watkins didn't look too good  
either.  
"What makes you think that I have crates of _stuff_ in my basement?"  
Tamika smiled at him sweetly.  
"Why you told us in Washington, remember?" Watkins looked befuddled.  
"Uh - I'm afraid all of those crates have been thoroughly searched. There's nothing in them but stone carvings and pieces of pottery."  
"Are there anymore carvings of jaguars? When my dad sent me the  
pendant, he said that he was tracking down something."  
Declan looked a little annoyed. Tamika hadn't told him any of this.  
"What else did your father say?" Watkins was definitely scared of what  
she might say.  
"Oh, he didn't say anything else. He did say that he hoped that I  
would have a chance to visit Tikal to see where he worked." Watkins was  
flustered fearing what she might say next.  
"How would I go about doing that?" She again smiled sweetly.  
"From Mexico City, you can easily find a guide who will arrange a bus  
through the Mexican state of Chiapas and then a boat ride up the Usumacinta  
River into Guatemala. You're not thinking of going there on your own, are  
you?"  
Tamika smile satisfactorily.

The next day, Peggie and Miranda were seated in Joshua Watkins' office  
at ICAR.  
"You say that you haven't seen your friend in over a week? But, what  
makes you think they are here in New Orleans?"  
Peggie knew that the man was lying. She had not mentioned that Declan  
was traveling with anyone.  
"My friend here thinks that he was headed here." Watkins conveniently  
changed his story.  
"Oh yes, I saw them in Washington. They seemed to be - very close.  
maybe they ran off together. You know how you young people are."  
Miranda and Peggie exchanged glances. They knew that running off to  
solve a mystery was much more believable than Declan running off for aromantic tryst.  
Things were getting out of hand. Too many people knew what was going  
on. After Peggie and Miranda left, Watkins went to a secret panel in the  
wall and extracted a dusty leather-bound book. He opened it and began  
reading:

_ "The clues to the new Jaguar City are coming together now. The focus is on Temple IV where the stela may still be in place. I am convinced that a ruler from the 7th century left Tikal to find a new city before Temple IV was built. The new fragment dates after the construction of Temple IV and marks the anniversary of the old event. I believe that this pyramid is pointing to the Jaguar City, but which way? I am uneasy about my relationship with Joshua Watkins. I am unhappy about his obsession with Cortez' gold, his trips back and forth to New Orleans and his lack of practice with crews. . . "_

The diary suddenly broke off. Watkins remembered what happened  
next.  
"Watkins, I didn't expect you back so soon." Michael Patton said.  
Watkins went on to talk about the bad weather conditions. He said that they  
were bringing supplies.  
"You appear to be loading supplies instead of unloading them. " Patton  
saw the crates marked 'chicle'.  
"What is going on here?" Patton asked. Watkins tried to laugh it off.  
"Everything is in order. They are marked for delivery to ICAR."  
"What do you mean 'in order'. We didn't make arrangements to ship  
anything to ICAR or anywhere else. Nothing is supposed to leave Guatemala  
unless it's been cataloged and okayed for temporary loan by the Institute.  
You are a smuggler and a looter!" he accused Watkins. Watkins would not  
waiver.  
"I prefer to call myself an art lover. The thought of these beautiful  
pieces remaining in this primitive country is stupid and shortsighted. They  
could be inadvertently destroyed. These people don't know what they have  
here. I am saving them from that."  
"You are robbing them of their artistic heritage and you're using me to  
do it!" "I don't have to be using you. I'm offering you a chance of a  
lifetime. I am making it possible for you to go on with your work. . .and  
maybe even find the lost Jaguar City which I've been reading about in your  
notes. . ."  
"My notes? You've been . . ."  
"I must say that you have little choice. I've been careful to mention  
your name numerous times in my reports. Your signature had also been forged  
on various documents. By the time they straighten the whole mess out, we  
will have discovered your lost city. We're already looking for it."  
"You'll never get away with it."  
"Think it over. I'll give you until tomorrow."  
Watkins smiled as he remembered that he hadn't given him until the  
morning. He sent his best chiclero to kill him. Raul had returned and  
described how he plunged his machete through the tent slicing through  
Patton's abdomen. They even went to Patton's camp to see the evidence.  
The rumors had started three months later. The natives had reported  
that there was a white man in the jungle. He had a sick feeling that this  
man was Patton.  
I had no choice but to eliminate Raul. He made his assistant help him.  
He had sent Raul down into an abandoned tomb chamber near Temple IV. A blow to the head and then sealing the tomb with a huge stone finished off the deed.  
Watkins ran his fingers over the bloodstained binding of the diary,  
"Animal blood." he said.  
And now I have snoops asking questions of half the archaeologists on the  
East Coast about jaguars and lost cities. He was beginning to get very  
nervous indeed.  
"Oh no, you can't be serious. We're actually going to Guatemala?"  
Peggie was not a happy camper.  
"Why do you think I had you bring your passport?" Peggie knew that she  
shouldn't have been surprised, but she didn't think that they would actually  
go.  
Joshua Watkins had proved to be a very suspicious man. His slimy-sweet  
charm had been meant to throw them off the trail. He was quite handsome and was known to be a 'lady killer'. One look at these women and he knew what he must do. They were getting too close. "Do you think Michael Patton is still alive?" Miranda asked. Peggie  
hesitated. She wasn't quite sure.  
"I don't know, but I do know that something dangerous is going on."

When they arrived in Mexico City, they had to figure out what to do.  
Somehow they would have to make passage to Guatemala and then on to Tikal.  
But, until then, they decided to have some fun. What was considered fun to an anthropologist and an archaeologist's daughter? Why a museum of course.  
They decided to go to an anthropology museum . They came to a sign that said:  
Museo Nacional De Anthropologic.  
They had a very nice time looking at artifacts that didn't really have  
anything to do with their quest. While they were walking, Tamika slipped her  
arm through Declan's arm and it felt very intimate. Declan was busy trying  
to read the signals, but failed.  
When they were finished at the museum Tamika asked, "What should we do now?" Their footsteps echoed in the courtyard of the museum.  
"Well, we have to get to Tikal and if I'm right, someone will come to us  
and provide us passage." Declan liked the look of awe that he received from  
Tamika.  
"How do you know this?" Tamika said. Declan smiled.  
"Someone has been following us ever since we left the airport."  
Tamika shuddered as she realized the magnitude of what Declan was  
saying. Instinctively, he moved to her side and held her. She felt better  
knowing that he was there.  
Next, Declan noticed that they hadn't seen any people in the museum. He  
had, at first, thought that it was because it was the middle of the afternoon  
and that people were taking siestas. But, there were no tourists either. He  
was puzzled. They went to the offices. On the door, they saw a sign: "All  
archaeologists are in the field."  
They did see something before they left that would help them on their  
quest. It was a map of where they were to go. It was the Yucatan peninsula.  
They decided afterwards to walk around the marketplace. They went fromstall to stall looking at all of the beautiful objects. While standing at a  
stall of beautiful headbands, a man approached them. His name was Jaime  
Rojas.  
"Ah, these headbands are beautiful, but the headbands in Guatemala are  
more beautiful. Do you need a guide?" They eyed him suspiciously because  
they had not said that they were trying to get to Guatemala.  
"Just how do we get to Guatemala?" Declan asked.  
"Es muy facil if you have the proper papers. You need only to buy  
tickets." Tamika caught another chill as she recognized the words from her  
nightmare. Her eyes held the terror of recognition as well. Declan became  
concerned.  
"My uncle is in the travel business. Here is his address. He will help  
you get to your destination." He was gone as quickly as he had appeared.  
"Are you all right?" Declan asked. Somehow her nightmare was coming  
true.  
"What do you know about premonitions?" she asked hauntingly.  
"I know - a little." Declan replied.  
"What if my father is in danger?" It was highly possible that Michael  
Patton was in trouble, but he didn't want to tell her that.  
They went to the address that was given to them by Jaime Rojas. When  
they arrived, they were eyed suspiciously by Jaime's uncle. They were told  
to meet him that night at the main bus station at 8:30.  
Declan and Tamika went back to the hotel to freshen up and to eat and  
arrived back at Mr. Rojas' at 8:30.  
"Are you ready to leave? he asked hurriedly. Even though they felt  
uneasy, they knew that if they didn't go no, they would not be able to go at  
all.  
"From here we go to Villahermosa, Tabasco and then to Tenosique town.  
It's on the river. This will put you in Guatemala quickly."  
Declan was uneasy. He realized that he was putting them both in danger,  
but Tamika was determined to continue the search for her father. As they bumped along the dusty road in the middle of the night, Tamika dozed and leaned heavily onto Declan's shoulder. It felt good having her there. He placed his arm around her and held her.  
Jaime's uncle, Manuel, turned and looked at them. He didn't know why  
Senor Watkins wanted them brought to Guatemala. He just did as he was told.  
Declan wondered if they were going to Guatemala of their own free willor not.  
They drove across the great plateau of Central Mexico to the state of  
Veracruz. They entered the Tuxtla mountains. Declan noticed that some of  
the mountains were actually active volcanoes. He could see them glowing and billowing in the distance. He looked at his 'hosts'. They didn't seem to be worried by the sight of the volcanoes.  
When they reached a certain spot that he assumed was Tenosique town.  
They were joined by a Maya named Chan, who brought food: black beans, and tortillas.  
Manuel left and they didn't see him for the remainder of the night. Tamika expressed concern.  
"Do you think that we'll be abandoned?" she asked as they ate their  
beans and tortillas. Declan didn't know which scenario was worse: being  
abandoned or being with that Manuel character.  
"We'll be all right." Declan answered, but, he wasn't sure.  
"I'll tell you what, if it makes you feel better, I'll write a note." He took a small memo pad from his pocket as well as a stub of pencil and started writing. He was doing this solely to make her feel better.  
"We'll say that we are being kidnaped and are headed for Tikal. If  
Manuel is reliable, we won't have to use it." He folded it up and put it in  
his shoe. Tamika knew that he was being silly, but she thought that it was  
sweet of him to try to ease her mind.  
After a very uncomfortable night's sleep on the hard ground, Declan and  
Tamika woke to a breakfast of the same black beans and tortillas. When they  
finished eating, they were told that they could explore the area. They  
didn't waste any time. They began walking. Tamika looked hopeful, but  
Declan knew that they would not be allowed to explore if they could actually  
get anywhere.  
"Look!" Tamika said excitedly.  
Just ahead, they saw a group of archaeologists working on a structure  
with glyphs carved on a big stair. They started to approach one of the  
archaeologists, when Manuel suddenly came from the jungle.  
"You moved a lot quicker than they thought you would. We need to leave,  
the pilot is waiting."  
Once in the air, Manuel explained that they were following the west side  
of the Yaxchilan River.  
"There was a lost city there. It used to be my father's favorite site." She tried not to let him see the tears in her eyes, but he did.  
They entered the mouth of the Pasion River and headed for Sayache.  
"What's that?" Tamika asked pointing to a group of people and trucks.  
"It looks like a military checkpoint." Declan answered. He mentally  
memorized the area.  
Again, Tamika slept, and after awhile, Declan slept as well. He dreamt  
that they were standing near a temple in the middle of the jungle. Tamika  
was smiling and she was really beautiful. All of a sudden, three jaguars  
came tearing out of the jungle and started tearing her apart. Declan heard  
screaming and realized that Tamika really was screaming.  
Tamika had been dreaming as well and was most probably having a  
nightmare.  
"It's okay. Shhh!" He held her tightly and kissed her forehead.  
"I'm here. You're safe." He didn't know if that statement was accurate.  
Tamika was now sobbing as she clung to him. He soothed her until she was  
finally able to go back to sleep. He had to get them out of here.

In the morning, Declan and Tamika were brought before Joshua Watkins.  
Neither one of them seemed surprised to see him.  
"I am on your side, Miss Patton, you see, I too believe that your father  
is alive. You can help me find him. No one has been able to find him - not  
even your mother."  
Tamika felt a twinge of guilt at that moment. Shortly after her father's disappearance, Tamika's mother had tried to find Tamika's father.  
Tamika had thought that her mother was foolish. That was until she received  
the letter and pendant. Then, her mother died and she didn't get the chance  
to tell her that she had been right all along.  
Joshua Watkins continued.  
"Your father was eager to claim sole credit for the major new Maya site.  
He didn't leave me word as to where he was going as we had arranged. Any  
number of things could have happened to him. There was only one place where  
he would go - to the Lost Jaguar City. Even if he did find it, he might be  
tempted to keep the information to himself." Watkins was putting the looting  
blame onto Patton, Declan thought, but why? He hoped that Tamika wasn't  
falling for it.  
"You said that my pendant held the key. In what way?" Tamika asked as  
she held the pendant out to the man. "If you show it to the chicleroes, they might recognize it and tell us  
where the lost city can be found."  
Tamika, as well as Declan, knew that a chiclero was a man that  
gathered gum resin from the sapodilla tree. Chicleroes also know the jungle  
and make excellent guides. "If you and your friend would like, you may  
look at Temple IV. There will be no tourists there due to the shortage of  
fresh water. After all, it is the dry season and what a pity, someone  
destroyed the pump room." Watkins gave his sly, slimey smile as he turned to go.  
"Why did you give him the pendant?" Declan asked in an angry whisper.  
"It doesn't matter anymore, Declan. Don't you see? If he wanted it, he  
could have taken it. We're out here in the middle of nowhere." He knew that  
she was right. He took her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze.  
"Come here, I want to show you something." he brought her over to some  
crates that were similar to the ones they had seen in the basement of the  
Institute in New Orleans.  
The crate read: ICAR US / chicle  
The crate had not been nailed shut, so they took a look. There was no  
chicle, but there was something else of interest. There was a gold mask.  
From everything they had learned, this gold mask, with it's crossed eyes,  
was a representation of the sun god.  
"You will not find the temple in that crate." Both Tamika and Declan  
whirled around to find Joshua Watkins standing right behind them. Boy, he's  
everywhere, Declan thought. Tamika noticed that he didn't look angry; he  
looked more amused than anything.  
"Manuel will take you to the temple." Watkins indicated Manuel who was  
standing nearby.  
"I'd like to telegraph some of my friends first." Declan said. He was  
not surprised when both men began to laugh.  
"Don't be so naive, Professor Dunne. Why do you think that we came here  
by an untraceable route? No one knows where you are. You are utterly alone."  
Tamika started to run, but they were both captured and bound. They each  
contemplated what would be their fate.

Less than ten miles away, Michael Patton and his assistant, Jorge Lopez,  
were setting up their camp just south of a trail leading to Uaxactun.  
Michael Patton began writing a letter to his good friend Leo Goodman:  
_"Ever since late August when Jorge came back to camp and told me that Watkins had murdered Raul for not killing me - I have scarcely dared to move from my hiding spot. Because I have no way of knowing which of the researchers are in Watkins' pay, I can't risk showing myself to anyone. I will not return to Tikal until I can be sure that whatever happens to me, you will know all the clues I now have as to the location of the lost Jaguar City. Perhaps you could get there before Watkins.  
By my calculations, the date on the new Stela fragment near Temple IV, records the eighth Katun anniversary of the earlier date 9.9.14.12.4 9 Kan 17 Ceh.  
That very date, 9 Kan 17 Ceh, appears on the jade jaguar pendant.  
Now this date, Leo, deals with a Venus event. I believe that on that  
date, 9.9.14.12.4, which I equate to be October 28 A.D. 627, Venus rose in a line made by the location of the Jaguar City - itself recorded on both the pendant and the Stela fragment by the glyphs. In order to firmly establish that alignment, a third point is necessary. The third point is none other than Temple IV at Tikal.  
As you know, the temple was built some 160 years after A.D. 627, but  
the Venus event is recorded on the later Stela. So, the Maya must have  
remembered the event and re-marked it with that Stela.  
There's more proof: if you recall the Stela fragment in Maler's  
photograph in the Peabody Museum catalog, there is a "count forward" test with an interval of 3.0.10.14.0 or 435, 880 days. If you take my fragment  
date and add 435,880 days to it, you arrive at 12.18.5.8.4 which equates to December 4, 2002. A 'cracked earth' event is predicted for that day, which of course, is tomorrow. Soon, we will know how good the Maya were at predicting.  
I must be at the temple tomorrow to make the critical sighting. As soon  
as I take the sighting, I plan to leave the Petan by a secret route that  
Jorge and I have arranged with Clarence Macomber. No matter what happens to me, I know that Jorge will deliver this message. Please see that he is well rewarded."  
Michael read the letter aloud to check for mistakes and then sealed itin an envelope and gave it to Jorge, who placed it in his shirt. Neither of  
the men noticed the chiclero crouched in a nearby tree._

Tamika felt fuzzy as she awoke. She vaguely remembered Manuel had  
injected them with something before she faded into unconsciousness.  
She sat up now and looked over at Declan. He had tried to fight and  
ended up with a bluish-black bruise on his forehead. Tamika reached forward  
to stroke the spot and he slowly woke from unconsciousness. He immediately  
sat up and looked around.  
"Where the hell are we?" he asked.  
"I think we're in the temple - Temple IV to be exact. By the way, we have a friend over there."  
They didn't know it, but they were looking at the badly decomposing body of Raul Uc.  
"My guess is that he starved to death." She looked away in disgust as  
she realized that she was hungry.  
Declan was up looking for a way out; although, he knew that there  
wouldn't be one.  
We're stuck in here, aren't we?" She knew that he had been trying to spare her feelings. Declan came over to her. She was trembling. Declan felt  
really bad about letting things go this far. He thought that he could handle  
things. He had been wrong, and now look where they were. He put his arms  
around her and held her tightly.  
"I am so sorry." he said quietly. Tamika looked up at him. She could  
feel the emotion behind his words.  
"Declan, it's not your fault, it's my fault for bringing you on this  
crazy quest." They both laughed nervously and then suddenly got quiet.  
Declan cradled her face in his hands. He sighed heavily. He knew that  
Tamika had originally wanted to put their relationship on hold. He looked at  
her now; he wanted her.  
She looked at him. She understood what the look on his face meant.  
"Declan, I. . ." she had been going to say that she wasn't ready yet,  
but she realized that was not true. She wanted him. It was Tamika that made the first move, in fact, Declan was quite surprised when she began kissing him. Her kiss was so sensual, Declan shuddered with emotion. He knew that once he started, he wouldn't be able to stop. He pleaded for sanity.  
"Tamika, are you sure, because I'm not sure that I can stop." She  
looked into his eyes and said, "I am sure." That was all that needed to be  
said before Declan started kissing her. He was lost in her arms; he knew  
that it would be this way. He murmured sweet nothings in her ear and finally  
stopped to look at her.  
"I love you." He said breathlessly. He could barely make out the tears  
in her eyes. He brushed them away and began kissing her again. This time,  
Tamika stopped. He had, at first thought that she had changed her mind. He  
looked at her questioningly, Tamika moved to remove Declan's glasses and put them safely out of the way. She continued kissing him as he pulled her down on top of him.

Your Love Pursues:

It's me again  
I know you know  
I wandered off but I've nowhere left to go  
So many times  
Why do you forgive  
And take me back no matter what my story is  
Yes, I know, you love me so  
What can I say

I wanna love this true  
I wanna run to you  
Tell me, how can a heart refuse  
I wonder what you see  
That you would run to me  
Oh, I love that your love pursues

Through ups and downs  
And in-betweens  
I fall away more than I am following  
If I were you  
I'd have given upBut you chase me down with your unrelenting love  
Yes, I know, you love me so  
What can I do

I hear you here, say  
"Have no fear  
Don't be afraid"  
Turn me around  
I'll turn around  
I won't turn away

Written by Jason Davis, John Di Grazio & Grant Cunningham  
(c) 2000 Infinity Music / ASCAP / River Oaks Music (admin. by EMI Christian  
Music Publishing) /Imagine This Music (admin. by EMI Christian Music  
Publishing)

As she slept, she saw herself surrounded by jaguars again. They were  
closing in when suddenly she saw herself looking up. She had found some  
stones and was stacking them one on top of the other and she was climbing  
toward the ceiling and away from the jaguars. She was up near the ceiling  
now, when she saw a small hole. She started digging until the hole was big  
enough for her to fit through. She ran into the arms of her father.  
Tamika awoke with a start and slipped on her clothes. Hearing her,  
Declan woke up as well.  
"Tamika, are you all right?" he asked sleepily. She was fully awake.  
"I know how to get out." she said suddenly. Declan, who was not fully  
awake, followed Tamika blindly. She had begun pulling rocks and dragging huge boulders over to the center of the room.  
"W-What are you doing?" Declan asked. She was struggling to pull the  
big rocks over.  
"Help me, Declan." This seemed to wake Declan up a little. He started  
helping her. They worked silently for a few moments until the stack was  
pretty tall.  
"Are you going to tell me now what you're doing?" he asked.  
"There's a way out up here in the ceiling." Together, the two of them made a huge rubble pile. They finally reached  
a wooden beam high in the vault. The beam was too rotten to stand on, so  
they pulled and pulled until it fell away from the wall. Part of the vault  
came away with it half burying Raul's body and causing Tamika to lose her  
balance. She landed hard on her knees causing her jeans to rip and her knees  
to bloody. Declan was immediately concerned.  
"I'm all right. Just push as hard as you can on that spot." Tamika  
climbed back up to help him and together they pushed the capstone until it  
finally dislodged.  
"We did it!" Tamika said excitedly as they scurried through the hole  
they had made. They traveled a little ways along the path where they found their luggage.  
"They wanted it to look as if we came here on our own." Declan muttered.  
"Let's follow this path." Declan said as he retrieved his flashlight  
from his pack.  
On the path now, Tamika found something else.  
"It's a hat. It's my dad's hat." In the meantime, Declan had seen  
something else.  
"Look up there. There's a light on top of the pyramid. This trail  
leads there. Let's go!"

Two hundred feet above Tamika and Declan, Manuel and Watkins watched the light that suddenly appeared on the trail below.  
"Who the hell ..." Manuel hissed.  
"I don't know," Watkins interrupted.  
"We can only wait and see."  
Both men watched as the light bobbed up the trail closer and closer.

Declan and Tamika continued to the summit as if they were being pulled  
by Patton's light. On top of the pyramid, Tamika saw her father.  
"Dad!" she cried and burst into tears. "Dad!"  
Patton stood looking at them, dumbfounded. His first thought was that  
he was hallucinating. Here before him was his daughter and a young man.  
When her father didn't respond, she had a chilling feeling. It was  
happening just as in her dream; he didn't recognize her. She wanted to breakthe strange spell.  
"Dad, we've got to get out of here. Watkins is going to kill us!" Hearing Watkins' name, seemed to bring Patton back to reality. He was  
not hallucinating after all.  
"Tamika!" he ran to her and enfolded her in a bear hug and then reached  
out to shake Declan's hand.  
"Dad, this is Declan Dunne. He has helped me all along the way and is  
very special." Patton gave Declan's hand an extra squeeze when he caught the meaning of Tamika's words.  
"I want details, but not now. There's something that I have to do this  
minute or I won't have another chance." Michael Patton began running around  
checking his instruments and his watch. Tamika, clearly, did not understand  
what was going on.  
"But, Dad, we're in danger. You don't understand. . ."  
"I do, believe me. Bear with me for just a few more moments."  
In the east, they could see a billion stars, so it was easy enough to  
find the horizon as he looked through the telescope to find what he wanted.  
All he had to wait was a minute or two, and then a bright star winked into  
sight above the tree line. It was Venus, the morning star. The Maya had  
called it Xux ek, "The Wasp Star" or Chac Ek, "The Red Star" and considered  
it a bad omen.  
Patton looked through the telescope at the bright star and noted the  
precise angle on the degree dial. He rechecked the angle and began writing  
in a small notebook. He unfolded a large map and, using a protractor, he  
began to pencil in the angle readings.  
"Dad, if we stay, Watkins will find us. We have to go."  
"It's almost time. I can't go now, or I won't have all the data I need. I don't want to risk your safety, so you and your young man go down that  
path. It leads to the Jungle Inn. Tell them everything; they'll protect you."  
"Sir, we don't want to leave you here." Declan said after he saw the  
concern on Tamika's face.  
"Fine, fine but stay close to me. I just need to take this transit  
apart."  
The first sunbeams of morning were touching the rooftop behind Patton.  
As he stepped onto the transit, he looked out onto the horizon. He then  
checked his telescope one more time.  
There on the horizon, almost too low to be seen, was a solid shape. Itwasn't a tree; it was more like a mound and with a tiny patch of white. It  
was stone. That's a mound, he thought. It's far - about twenty-five  
kilometers away.  
"That must be it." he said aloud. "Either that's the Jaguar City, or  
there's a site line there that will lead beyond to the lost city."  
Patton drew away from the transit and blinked. The sunlight was too  
strong; everything seemed to be bathed in blue light. When he turned to look  
at Tamika, he was staring down the barrel of Manuel's rifle. Behind Rojas,  
covering Tamika and Declan, stood Watkins.

"Congratulations, Professor Patton, on the greatest discovery of yourcareer. Now, hand over your notes and the map, please." "Damn you, Watkins," Patton said and handed the items over. "At least let my daughter and her friend go. They don't know what thisis about." "But, you see, I can't do that now; however, I'm not an unreasonableman, I will return your daughter's little trinket." He tossed the jadependant toward Tamika. "Let's all go down now. Manuel first, then you and them." He called toManuel. "Vamenos, hombre!" Tamika was visibly shaken as she pressed against Declan for support.Her fingers trembled with emotion as she placed the pendant on Declan's neck. "I love you, Declan." she whispered.Before Declan could respond, he heard Manuel say, "Senor Watkins, ahelicopter! Look!" "That's odd." Watkins said glancing at the large helicopter comingacross the treetops. "Hurry up!" He motioned toward the rubble trail as the sound of thehelicopter reached them. While Watkins and Manuel were preoccupied with the helicopter, Pattonwhispered, "You and Declan hang back with me. We'll be safest up here. The Mayaknew..." Emiliano Guzman was on top of Temple III. He had remained idle sincegiving the signal that Patton was approaching, but that had been hoursbefore. He had started to become more active when he saw Tamika and Declan approach, but he now saw that things were under control again. When he saw that they were preparing to descend, he started to descend as well. Halfway down, Emiliano paused. He noticed that the bushes werequivering, but there was no wind. The movement was coming from below him as if from the very depths of the earth. Suddenly, part of the mound broke apart and the rubble started slidingdownhill pulling Emiliano with it. Dios mio, thought Emiliano, un tremblor!Earthquake! He hurriedly ran off into the woods. As he reached a certain point, he stopped for some reason. Suddenly, a huge tree uprooted and fell. Before he could get away, his leg was trapped.He frantically tried to remove his leg, but to no avail. Then, he sawsomeone approaching. It was a woman - a Maya woman. "Thank God you are here." Emiliano cried. He turned his head to seeher better, because Rosana Uc said nothing. The last thing Emiliano saw wasthe hate reflected in Rosana's eyes and the piece of tree limb that began toswing toward his head. As the party made their way down the side of the temple with Manuel infront, the first shock wave hit. It was very high on the Richter scale.Immediately, the trail below Manuel disappeared with a crash. Manueldesperately clung to a small tree, but could not hold on. He fell helplesslyinto the void left by the missing trail. They watched in horror as moredebris fell on top of him - crushing him. "Lie flat!" screamed Patton. "We're safer here than on the ground."Watkins, who only thought that Emiliano had set off the dynamite aheadof time, continued on by a different path until he reached solid ground. Hedidn't know where the others were, but he had what he had come for; Pattonwould never remember the crucial figures. Now only he, Joshua Watkins, couldplot the location of the Jaguar City. He patted his pocket to make sure itstill contained the precious map and Patton's notes. He then headed forcamp. He tried to avoid being seen by the helicopter hovering above. From the helicopter, Peggie and Miranda watched the drama unfold. "What do you think's going on?" Miranda yelled over the noise. "I don't know." Peggie screamed back, "but, they're still on thepyramid." Miranda was pointing excitedly now. "Look, they're lying flat! There's Declan and that must be Tamika and .. .and. . ." Miranda broke off mid-sentence. "Who's that with them? Do you think that's Tamika's father?" Peggieasked. Miranda didn't know, but they did know that they were very happy tosee their friend alive. Suddenly, part of the pyramid slid away! "Oh, no!" they both cried simultaneously. After a few moments ofsuspense, the dust and debris cleared and they could see. "It's all right! They're getting up, look. See! They're all right!"They had grabbed each other's hands and would have done a little jig hadthey not been in the helicopter. As the pilot went in to land, it dawned on all three of them what wasactually happening.Watkins was horrified at the sight of the ruined camp. A tall Ramon tree  
had fallen on the tents. He was, however, glad that no damage was done to  
the Suzuki jeep that he had rented in Flores. It was full of gasoline and  
ready to go.  
He was still unsure about the arrival of the helicopter. Even if it was  
full of Federales, they would be excited about finding the long-missing  
archaeologist, as well as news of the earthquake, to be worried about him.  
Thus, giving him time to escape.  
Getting out of Tikal had gone fairly well. Only two of the hotel guests  
had noticed the Suzuki. Now, he was on his way to Flores and then on to  
Sayaxche'.  
Watkins' Suzuki pulled into Sayaxche' in late afternoon. One of thethings that Watkins noticed was that everyone was talking about the  
earthquake.  
"Amigo." he began in Spanish.  
"I need two men to help me for an hour. I will pay ten quetzales to  
each. Anyone interested?"  
"Si, why not?"  
"Very well, hombres," Watkins said, "I want one of you to go over to  
town and fetch Eduardo Guzman. I am a friend of his father Emiliano."  
Watkins peeled off the bills and gave it to the man.  
"Please tell Eduardo that Senor Watkins needs him to bring the motor for  
the boat and a can of gasoline." The man acknowledged his instructions and  
was off.  
To the other man, Watkins said, "Come with me." The tiny airstrip at Tikal was not the only means of transportation Watkins had out of the area. Because of the nature of his business, he had devised several ways out, in case something went wrong. Thus, the dugout he had stowed.  
Because of the attention that had been drawn to him, he decided to move  
his smuggling operation to another part of the world. The Jaguar City would  
have to wait for now, which would also help to take the heat off things.  
The man that Watkins had hired, found Eduardo and was now bringing the  
motor and gasoline as he was instructed.  
"Is my father not with you, Senor Watkins?" Eduardo asked.  
"No, he is back at Tikal. He will be here shortly." Watkins lied.  
The stones are still here, Watkins thought. Excellent. The stones were  
wrapped in banana leaf and tied with heavy rope.  
"These are much too heavy, Senor. We will need more men to help carry  
them." Watkins didn't know if Eduardo was trying to stall for time, or what,  
but Watkins was losing patience.  
"You dumb bastard," Watkins shouted. "I'll help you. We load the boat  
now!"  
Eduardo stood quietly and gazed at Watkins' face.  
"Muy bien." he said shortly.  
Watkins and Eduardo began the slow task of moving the stones. When that was done, Watkins gingerly climbed aboard. Next, Eduardo climbed aboard with the oar.  
Then, it happened.  
The reeds near the boat began to shake gently. The man on shore thatWatkins had hired began waving his arms and shouting. There was only one  
word that Watkins could make out - tremblor. Another earthquake.  
Watkins felt as if the water was sliding out from under him, like water  
being poured out of a bowl. He fought hard to try to keep control of the  
boat. What happened next was very frightening. The river seemed to split in  
half and a great geyser of water broke through the surface and shot a hundred  
feet in the air. This forced the boat into the air and closer to shore. In  
the roar, a huge ceiba tree lurched forward and the handle of the tiller was  
knocked from Watkins' hand. He tried not to panic, which proved difficult.  
I can out swim this, Watkins thought. He moved toward the bow to be away  
from the propeller.  
He hesitated for the right moment, but it never came. The ceiba tree  
caught the boat near the bow pinning Watkins' leg. The combination of the  
trapped leg and the weighted down boat, took Watkins swiftly to the bottom of the river.  
Eduardo had survived. When the boat was catapulted skyward, the boy was thrown out near the shore. He watched in satisfaction as Watkins sunk below the surface of the water.

EpilogueIt was Christmas Eve. The snow was gently falling and everything lookedlike a Christmas card. Tamika and Michael Patton were at Tamika's house ready to receive theirnew friends. "I'm so happy, Daddy." Michael understood even more now that Tamika had told him everything about Declan, and Michael knew that Declan held a special place in her heart. The doorbell rand and Tamika eagerly went to answer it. It was Declan,Peggie and Miranda. "Hi, guys. Come on in." They came in and everyone noticed as Declankissed Tamika. Tamika and her father had cooked a fantastic dinner and they all exchanged presents. Declan thought about the special gift that he had forTamika, later. All in all, it was a really fun evening. Declan, though, was glad to see everyone go. "I thought they'd never leave." he said mischievously. "By the way, I have something for you." Declan gave her the small boxand Tamika was suddenly afraid to open it. But, she did. "It's the jade necklace." Declan had given it back to her. "I knew it meant a lot to you and I was really touched that you gave itto me, but I know you only did it because you thought we were going to die." He saw the hurt look on her face and knew that she had misunderstood his intentions. "Look closely." he said softly. Next to the jade necklace on the square bed of cotton, was a ring. "Oh!" The first thing that Declan did was place the jade necklace around herneck. He then took the ring and placed it on her finger. She had notanswered, so Declan looked in her eyes asking for an answer. "Yes, of course, yes." she threw herself into Declan's arms, and theykissed. Neither one of them noticed the twinkle in the jaguars eyes as if heapproved of them. Finis Title : ANCIENT MAN Artist : Burlap to Cashmere Album : Anybody out there ( ́98) Written by Steven Delopoulos and John Philippidis Ancient Man:Do you believe in ancient destiny?This food you've been givin me,Is making me blind, ya see.My soul needs to be,My soul needs to be,Free.Bridge:So many times you won.So many souls you burned.CHORUS:Ancient man, where are you roaming?I cannot follow the dream.Ancient man, why are you crying?I cannot follow the schemes.You came to me with open arms,and stuff.You said you had holy bread.Man, ya know that was justwonder bread.Look here, my soul needs to be,My soul needs to be,Free(Bridge)(Chorus)(Bridge)(Chorus)(c)1997 Steven Delopoulos Publishing (ASCAP)/Trippy Stick Publishing (ASCAP)/J.Ernest Publishing (ASCAP)


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